Violence in Bangladesh is going from bad to worse, yet international concern and pressure for change remains worryingly inadequate

The situation in Bangladesh is going from bad to worse. Innocent lives are being lost at an alarming rate due to the heavy-handed police response to protests over a verdict from the controversial ‘International Crimes Tribunal’ (ICT). More than 100 people have been killed in three days mainly due to indiscriminate police shooting. The Economist has described the immediate result of the verdict as “the worst single day of political violence in the history of modern Bangladesh”. The current Awami League government has set out on a path which has divided the country and arguably brought it to the brink of civil war.

Despite wide media coverage of these frequently graphic atrocities, Western governments have put inadequate pressure on Bangladesh to stop this brutal repression of its citizens. The United Nations Secretary General and international humanrights organisations have issued statements on the situation, but few governments have voiced their concerns on the killings. While one of Bangladesh’s most respected human rights organisations has called for the Home Minister to resign, holding him responsible for the “killing spree” unleashed by state security forces, a pro-government Bengali newspaper reported that he is receiving a human rights award! This is the same minister whom a decorated Bangladeshi 1971 war hero, Kader Siddiqui, has said he would testify against as a war criminal, were the ICT impartial and willing to indict members of the ruling party.

The current Awami League government set up this domestic court to deal with allegedly ‘international crimes’, but has refused international oversight of the trial proceedings. The Awami League claims that the court has been set up to try alleged war criminals from the country’s independence war with Pakistan in 1971. It is certainly true that the people of Bangladesh have long sought closure for their war wounds and the perpetrators of war-time atrocities should be brought to justice.

Unfortunately, the Awami League government appears to be using this as an opportunity to weaken their political opposition. They have arrested and placed on trial 12 people alleged to have committed crimes against humanity during the war, and unsurprisingly, all of them are from the leading opposition parties including almost the entire current leadership of the party seen as the kingmaker in elections (and currently in alliance with the leading opposition party), Jamaat-e-Islami. This party was politically opposed to Bangladesh’s secession from Pakistan, but vehemently denies any involvement in atrocities committed by the Pakistan army and its paramilitary forces. The tribunal’s impartiality was in question from the start, since the investigators, prosecutors, and even judges appeared to have been selected on the basis of political affiliations. The ‘Skypegate’ scandal, uncovered in Dec 2012 by The Economist, revealed an alarming level of collusion between the judges, government ministers, prosecution, and a Bangladeshi lawyer in Brussels. Following this revelation, the presiding judge of the court resigned on 11th Dec 2012 citing personal reasons. However, no other person involved in the scandal faced any investigation and the trial continued as if nothing had happened.

The Skypegate scandal was revealed when the trial of Delwar Hossain Sayedee, a leader of the opposition, was awaiting verdict. The tribunal was then reconstituted by the government, but none of the final three judges ruling on Sayedee’s case had heard the entire proceedings–a fact protested by Human Rights Watch as undermining the possibility of a fair trial. Despite an appeal by the defence and international support for a retrial, the court only allowed the closing arguments to be re-heard. Meanwhile, the tribunal gave Jamaat leader Abdul Kader Mollah a life sentence, which sparked uproar at Shahbag, an area in the Bangladeshi capital, by government-backed activists demanding the sentence to be changed to a death sentence. Exploiting popular sentiment, the government promptly changed the law to allow the prosecution to appeal against sentences–a move also criticised by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Furthermore, contrary to the most basic standards of the rule of law, the Prime Minister demanded that the judges be attentive to “people’s expectations” in their verdict. The aforementioned flaws only hint at a myriad of other systemic problems in the ICT trial process.

The role of the majority of Bangladeshi media has been appalling and has only exacerbated an already volatile situation. Whereas Odhikar identify Jamaat supporters and the general public as the major victims of violence, much of the country’s media is trying to portray the victims as perpetrators. The media has been instrumental in blaming the opposition for recent appalling attacks on religious minority communities, dismissing Jamaat’s vehement denial and condemnation of these appalling attacks, their commitment to impartial investigations and compensation should any of their member’s be found involved, and their activists’ proactive move to protect minorities. They further fail to note Odhikar reports that ruling party members have been regularly attacking minorities over the past year without being brought to justice, while Jamaat has no such precedent. Many, including Hindu minority representatives, have noted that only the government stands to benefit from these attacks by deflecting attention from state violence; the crippled opposition can only be further harmed by out of character violence on minorities.

Most international news outlets have shown little interest in the escalating problems, with the exception of the BBC and Al-Jazeera. However, the BBC coverage in particular has been disappointing, insufficiently highlighting the irredeemably flawed and politicised nature of the ICT. Nor have they dwelt on the very possible and imminent outcome of this flawed process: the execution of potentially innocent people.

With the issue of how the next general election will be conducted still unresolved, and more ICT verdicts approaching, the country is clearly heading towards further chaos. It is essential the international community take a firm stance to ensure basic human rights are respected in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is dependent on aid from many countries in the West and Middle East. These countries should use their influence to demand that the Bangladeshi government allow for international oversight of these trials and stop interfering with its proceedings, allow citizens to exercise their democratic right to protest, and not allow its security forces to respond by shooting and killing indiscriminately. Otherwise, further innocent lives will be lost, leading in all probability to further conflict and potentially a civil war.

About the author

Dr Salman Al-Azami
Dr Salman Al-Azami is a senior lecturer in English Language at Liverpool Hope University. His latest book 'Religion in the Media: A Linguistic Analysis' (Palgrave Macmillan) will be published in August 2016. He tweets @linguistbd.

12 Comments

Amir

I am very disappointed that the platform has published this article by a biased party.

1. Salman Al-Azami is the son of one of the defendants in the war crimes trial and is thus not a disinterested or objective party.

2. Azami’s father is the notorious Ghulam Azam, a man who was the head of the Jamaat i Islami in the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in 1971 who worked with the Pakistani army to suppress the native population of Bangladesh which included massacres, rapes and organizing brothels.

3. Azami is linked to the radical and communal Jamaat i Islami which has threatened Bangladesh with civil war over these trials, refuses to apologize for its war crimes in 1971, has launched attacks against government institutions and also murdered policemen.

4. The Jamaat also lobbied middle eastern countries against the recognition of Bangladesh in the 1970s and cultivates and maintains good ties with middle-eastern regimes and its partisans often call for the mass expulsion of Bangladeshi workers from the gulf as a punitive measure for Bangladeshi domestic policies, which by the way have no impact on Saudi Arabia or the gulf.

Mass expulsion of Bangladeshi workers is collective punishment and is a grave violation of human rights, and it also destroys the lives of millions and their needy dependents.

This gives us just one flavour of the sort of ruthless organization that the so-called Jamaat i Islami is.

Azami ends his article with veiled threats of international sanctions against Bangladesh and a civil war. I do not believe that a civil war despite what Azami and Jamaati supporters may desire will happen.

The Platform has made a grave mistake in allowing a controversial figure with links to a controversial organization, “Jamaat e Islami” in writing this one-sided and biased article.

Mr. Amir, can you tell me who is not biased in Bangladesh? This is absurd. It is not important who writes it, what is written is important. You did not write anything that can be substantiated materially other than some Awami emotional scripts. If Professor Ghulam Azam worked with Pakistani Army then why are you not demanding the arrest and presence of that said Pakistani army in the ICT to cross check about his involvement? Why are you not asking to punish those who released Pakistani army ( particularly, 195 war criminals identified by Mujib)? What do you mean by communal and radical? You do not see Awami communal and radical politics? Your are simply blind.

Really, Bangladeshi people are passing through a crisis moment. Governmental corruption, massive police torture, so called war crime trail are threatening our peaceful existence in society. Religious belief is under cruel attack. Fundamental human rights are violating by the government every day. Our international friends should pay cooperation to us and create pressure over government to stop the violation against their own people.At the end we thank writer and publisher for disclosing the this good article.

India is directly backing the ongoing confrontational politics in Bangladesh, with the active help of the ruling Awami League, to bash popular national demand to hold the next general election under a neutral Caretaker Govt. India’s long-term plan to make Bangladesh a vassal state like Bhutan and Sikim will never be materialised.

Every Bangladeshi now wants to know:

1. Where these handful of Shahbag bloggers were when the thugs of Awami League looted and siphoned Tk.12,000 crore from 6 million innocent and helpless small investors in share market in 2010. Why the Awami looters were not punished as per findings and recommendations of Ibrahim Khaled Inquiry Commission?

2. Where were they when Awami League’s Board Members of state-owned Sonali Bank and Awami League’s political Advisors helped Hallmark Group to loot Taka.6,000 crore from state-owned Sonali Bank ?

3. Where were they when MLM Company Destiny looted and siphoned Tkaka.4,000 crore innocent people’s money?

Enough is enough ! Pls dismantle Sahbag and go home as people got much bigger movement ahead, to settle, over holding of a fair election under the caretaker govt. That movement will be much more wider and fiercer.

Congratulations Salman for this excellent writing . I want to add here some more point ..The issue is human right .If Jamaat leader is commited crime during war that should be judge in legal way by international standard.The tribunal is placde to judge them is a kangaroo tribunal backed by ruling party only to cracked down opposition for political purpose.All the human right organization expressed concern to make the tribunal international standard.British bar council asked to visit bangladesh to see the legal & human right issue for tribunal but gvmnt rejected.No international organazation is allowed to obserb this tribunal.so what is happening there,nothing just judicial killing.The skype scandal disclosed the dramma that governmt placed in tribunal.All the world media know this is only a drama to kill opposition.The war criminal is the Pakistani 195 soldier. where r they?what happed to Nizai & Iahia the culprit of the genocide during 1971 war?? indian & Mojib governmnt let them go without punishment.so we want judgment but not judicial killing

Thanks to Dr Salman for a well argued article which will not be welcome from people whose objective is to judicially murder people they dont like. They dont have any answer to the question where they have been during 40 years if they had evidence of any of these people as war crime suspects. They were not in any position to stop them. They cant also answer why Sk Mujib’s list did not include their names as war suspects either. They dont have an answer on how BAL made BJI partner during campaign for CTG when BNP refused to agree and enact.
If they have the evidence and courage let them go to ICC for it. They will never do it as they want to kill and they never seek justice. I welcome all the positive comments as it is clear that those seeking to kill and no amount of international concern or valid questioning, they dont care as they dont seek justice but revenge. If they have faith, let them make dua that “Allah if we are wrong give us your curse” and the BJI people can say that to them. The blinded people cant see light and we have to make dua that Allah please give them the ability to see the truth or prevent their vendetta from ever seeing the light of day.

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